


Loose Ends

by apprenticenanoswarm



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:27:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24422023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/apprenticenanoswarm/pseuds/apprenticenanoswarm
Summary: After the final battle, Hordak faces the first of many challenges.
Relationships: Entrapta/Hordak (She-Ra)
Comments: 18
Kudos: 190





	Loose Ends

“So,” said She Ra, “think you can do something about them?”

Her conversational tone unsettled him; he was used to being addressed as either a tyrant or a slave. “I’m… not sure. But I will try, if that’s what you want.”

He chose his words carefully, for he, in turn, was unused to addressing those who were neither underlings nor his God. Stiff politeness seemed a safe harbour.

Walking slowly – oh, how his body _ached_ now that Horde Prime wasn’t omnipresent in his mind, dulling his senses – he approached the nearest clone. It… he, like the others, was on the ground, clutching his head and wailing like a beast in its death throes.

‘Do something about them’. A little more specificity would have been nice.

Clearing his throat, Hordak prodded the clone with his boot. “You. Stop that. It’s not productive.”

To his irritation, the wailing grew louder. If only Shadow Weaver were here. She’d always been willing to take the reins when it came to managing Etherians and their uncontrolled emotions.

_This is no Etherian, though. This is my broth-…_

No. Not his brother. Just another slave.

Ah, but therein lay a clue. Thinking back, Hordak tried to remember how he’d felt on that fateful day when he’d first landed on Etheria, his connection to the hive and to Horde Prime freshly severed. How had he felt? What had he needed most, in that terrible moment? What words of comfort would have best served to soothe his soul?

Hordak closed his eyes. Breathed deep.

Then he bellowed, “ _On your feet, cadet_!” at the top of his lungs.

The clone froze for half a second, before leaping up, back ramrod straight. “Ah! I! I! I apologize!”

(It didn’t escape Hordak’s notice that She Ra had momentarily adopted an identical stance before very deliberately relaxing.)

Folding his arms, Hordak said to the clone, “There is much work to be done. Your sloth dishonours your brothers and your Prime.”

“But… but my Prime is…” the clone began, lip wobbling.

“There!” Hordak snapped, and pointed to She Ra. “Were you not paying attention, fool? Did you not see the almighty entity that vanquished the old Prime? Do you not recognise and respect your _new_ Prime?”

It was a gamble.

It worked.

“All hail the new Prime!” cried the clone, breaking into a delighted smile before throwing himself at She Ra’s feet.

Said feet quickly vanished from view as dozens of other clones followed suite. Through their ranks, the chant went up: “All hail the new Prime! All hail the new Prime!”

“No, no, no,” she hissed, glaring daggers at Hordak. “This was not what I wanted!”

Sighing, he hopped up onto the nearest clone and walked over them like a carpet until he was by her side. Speaking quietly, he said, “I know. But they’ve just had a piece of their souls torn away. They are in agony you can scarcely imagine and they are _lost_. Have mercy. Give them something to cling to. Tomorrow you can set about rehabilitating them and teaching them how to make lives of their own. For now, let them enjoy whatever comfort they can.”

She still looked doubtful, until he added, “Please, Adora. I will never beg you for anything else.”

“Alright,” she said at last. “Just for today. Um. What do I _say_ to them?”

“Whatever you want. They won’t care. So long as you say something.”

He left her standing knee-deep in clones, fumbling for words, and went to find Entrapta.

“Nice job,” grunted Catra as he passed her.

An olive branch? From his wayward soldier? Would wonders never cease. “Thank you. You, too, did well.”

Her ears twitched. After glancing around to ensure that no one was standing close enough to overhear her, she leaned in and murmured, “All these good people surrounding us, treating us like _we’re_ good people – it’s _weird_ , right?”

“I’m very glad I’m not the only one who thinks so,” he whispered back.

“Like, we should definitely be chained up, right? That’s what we’d do if we were them, yeah?”

“Chained and locked behind several forcefields,” Hordak agreed.

She shook her head, one sharp canine biting into her lower lip. “Should we tell them? ‘Hey, dummies, you’ve got two genuinely terrifying people on your hands, here – maybe do something about that’?”

Before he could reply, Entrapta bounced up and threw her arms around him with a squeal. “There you are! C’mon, I wanna introduce you to Darla!”

The ex-tyrant and ex-slave exchanged a helpless shrug with his ex-captain and possible-friend-to-be as Entrapta wrapped him up in hair and dragged him away.


End file.
